Pair Arrested When Cocaine Seized

June 20, 1985|By David Enscoe, Staff writer

CLEWISTON — A task force of lawmen waited for a small plane from Colombia to land on a rural airstrip, then seized more than 1,000 pounds of cocaine and arrested the pilot and an accomplice on drug trafficking charges, officials said Wednesday.

John R. Thrasher of Zephyrhills and Luis Marin of Bogota, Colombia, were arrested early Tuesday as they stepped off the twin-engined Navajo Panther at an airstrip south of State Road 846 in Hendry County, police said.

Agents from the Palm Beach and Hendry sheriffs` offices, U.S. Customs and Drug Enforcement Administration were hidden along the airstrip when the plane landed, officials said. After arresting Thrasher, the pilot, and Marin, the agents found 1,028 pounds of cocaine inside the plane, according to a spokesman for the Palm Beach County Sheriff`s Office.

Thrasher and Marin face federal drug trafficking charges, and were scheduled to appear before a U.S. magistrate in West Palm Beach today.